Concern at deployment of 150 Australian police officers to PNG

G20 stretches police manpower and leaves rest of state undermanned and at mercy of criminals

By Greg Stolz 

The Courier-Mail  

July 13, 2013 

THE G20 summit in Brisbane next year could stretch Queensland's thin blue line to breaking point and leave other parts of the state at the mercy of criminals, an ex-top cop turned criminologist has warned.

Terry Goldsworthy, a former long-serving Queensland Police Service detective inspector who is now associate professor in criminology at Bond University, said the QPS would struggle to cope with the combination of the G20, a major restructure and the deployment of 150 officers to Papua New Guinea.

Terry Goldsworthy warns the QPS may not have enough manpower to handle the G20 summit.

He said "smart criminals" would plan to take advantage of reduced police numbers outside Brisbane.
Dr Goldsworthy said thousands of police would be needed for the world leaders summit and he was worried the QPS had "too much going on" with the restructure and PNG deployment.
"I think it's going to be a real challenge,'' he said.
"They have the massive policing task of G20, they've just gotten rid of 25 per cent of the state's most senior officers in the restructure and they're sending officers to PNG.
"I just worry that there's too much going on at once. Police can't afford to muck up the G20 because the eyes of the world will be on us.''
Dr Goldsworthy, who finished his 28-year QPS career last year as an inspector with the Ethical Standards Command, said G20 would put "huge demands" on police.
He questioned the wisdom of making 100 of the state's 400 commissioned officers redundant at a time when experience would be needed to manage the G20.
"With the purge of the senior ranks, you've got more junior officers making higher-level decisions,'' he said.
Dr Goldsworthy said large numbers of police would be seconded to Brisbane to help protect world leaders.
He said only a handful of detectives were left on the Gold Coast during the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting at Coolum in 2002.
"You've got to ask if police are prepared and resourced for the G20 and, if they are, what will the effect be on local crime?'' he said.
"With so many police in Brisbane, the smart criminals will already be thinking of opportunities elsewhere in the state.''
A Queensland Police Union spokesman said the G20 would be a "massive" policing and security exercise but did not believe it would unduly stretch resources, as Australian Federal Police and armed forces would also be involved.
He said officers were more concerned with issues such as whether foreign bodyguards would be allowed to carry weapons.
The spokesman said the 150 officers being sent to PNG represented a "fraction" of police numbers and the "rules of engagement" for their deployment was the main worry.
Dr Louise Porter, a senior research fellow at the Centre of Excellent in Policing and Security, said the G20 would be "labour intensive" but believed police were equipped to handle it.
She said the restructure would streamline the QPS and increase frontline police.

Read more: http://www.couriermail.com.au/national-news/queensland/g20-stretches-police-manpower-and-leaves-rest-of-state-undermanned-and-at-mercy-of-criminals/story-fnii5v6w-1226678437159#ixzz2Yv6h7nHU

Seven PNG fishermen still missing in Torres Strait

By Naomi Lim 

The Courier-Mail  

July 13, 2013 10:24AM

HOPES are fading for seven fishermen missing in the Torres Strait for five days.

Thursday Island Water Police were called to join the air and sea search on Friday morning but the rescue effort was called off last night.
Four aircraft and one vessel combed waters south of Papua New Guinea but failed to find the fishermen, who are believed to have left Daru Island on Sunday, July 7.

Seven fishermen are missing after their boat capsized en route to Warrior Reef. Source: Supplied

Police said the boat and its 10 crew members intended to go fishing off Warrior Reef, 20 nautical miles west of Yorke Island.
"Sometime on Sunday or Monday the vessel overturned, throwing all on-board into the water," police said in a statement.
"Three of the men were subsequently picked up by a passing fishing boat on Monday and conveyed to Daru Island."
The boat washed up on the PNG mainland on July 10.
The search has been suspended while further investigations are conducted with Papua New Guinea authorities.

PNG demand improvement for Oceania Cup rugby decider

RNZI

Papua New Guinea rugby coach Alan Manning is expecting a clash of two distinct styles in today’s Oceania Cup decider against the Cook Islands in Port Morebsy.
Both teams are unbeaten going into the final round of matches, following victories over Tahiti and the Solomon Islands.
The winner of today’s game will advance to a home and away playoff against Fiji next year for a spot at Rugby World Cup 2015.
Pukpuks coach Alan Manning says the hosts have yet to put in a full 80 minute performance and will need to counter their opponents physicality.
“It’s gonna be the old speed versus brawn sort of thing. We are a lot lighter than the Cooks, they’ve got a fairly heavy pack, and obviously we’re a lot quicker so it will all come down to sort of ball retention.” A crowd of about 20,000 is anticipated for today’s matches, with the Solomons Islands and Tahiti to square off before the main game.
Meanwhile, a shot at qualifying for the Rugby World Cup isn’t the only prize on offer for the winner of today’s clash.
The Cook Islands team manager, Cam Kilgour, says the World Cup carrot is definitely in the back of their minds but victory would also provide a welcome cash injection.
“It’s a money factor too for either the Cook Island Rugby Union or the Papua New Guinea Rugby Union. They get a bit of a purse and that helps with development in that region. It just means that you get a bit more funding and plus if you play the Fijians home and away you get a sell-out crowd - pocket that money - and that money goes into development. Their is a lot riding on the game and the further you go up the more money you can put into development.”

Everyday superhero in trouble for using city asphalt to fix potholes

I found this story so heartwarming and relevant to Papua New Guinea where potholes are an everyday nightmare, costing millions of kina, and people waiting for the government to do everything. Here, an ordinary citizen known to the community as "the Robin Hood of potholes", works under cover of darkness to fill up potholes in Jackson, Missisipi, USA.PNG needs a superhero likes this..Malum

gawker.com

Jackson, Mississippi's longstanding and widespread pothole problem is finally getting fixed. Not by the city, mind you, but by an ordinary citizen known to the community as "the Robin Hood of potholes."

The "rogue road worker," as the Clarion Ledger calls him, is actually a mild-mannered screenprinter named Ron Chane.

On at least five separate occasions, Chane, who also goes by "The Pothole Patchman," has taken to the so-called "Six Flags streets" of Jackson under the cover of darkness armed with buckets of asphalt and a sense of civic duty.

According to Chane, he has filled over 100 potholes so far, leaving his mark behind like all good superheroes in the form of a spray-painted message that reads "citizen fixed."

Chane's selfless efforts to fix the city's bumpy infrastructure have been met with approval from other residents who say the city is simply too backed up and underfunded to fix the problem itself.

But the city sees Chane's unsolicited assistance as its problem: He's taking city asphalt without permission.

The source of Chane's pothole filling is a "large mound of road-building material" located near State Street.

"We do not accept any use of the city's resources without going through the proper legal channels," Jackson's newly elected mayor Chokwe Lumumba said in a statement.

But Chane insists he's just "putting [the asphalt] back where it belongs."

"I’m probably stealing from the city, but there’s not a sign saying ‘Don’t take this and put it in potholes," he said.

The 43-year-old hopes his actions will prompt the mayor to act aggressively against the pothole problem, but says the flip side of his mission is to let citizens know that "you have to sometimes take matters in your hands, in a creative and constructive way."

"Hopefully someone else will come behind me," he said. "I don't want to do the city's work forever."

Youth set to take on Kokoda track

Erin Pearson   |  July 12th, 2013

Geelong Advertiser

AN EXCITABLE group of at-risk Geelong youth are preparing to embark on an educational trip of a lifetime that'll see them retrace the footsteps of Australian war heroes.
Ten youths, aged 16 and 17, were recently selected to walk with police and sponsors for eight days along the rugged Kokoda track in Papua New Guinea.
Kirsty O'Loughlin, Leah O'Brien, Kassandra Cowle-Henry, Tyler Sheaf, Lachie Todd, Jackson Barlow, Blake Barry, Alesha Henare, Cameron Blacksell and Ben Deluca will head off in September to complete the gruelling eight-day trek through the same tough terrain as World War II heroes more than six decades ago.

Policeman Michael Reid with youth training. From left: Kirsty O'Loughlan, Leah O'Brien, Kassandra Cowle-Henry, Tyler Sheaf, Lachie Todd, Jackson Barlow and Blake Barry.

Leading Senior Constable Andy Brittain said the program was a first for Geelong following a number of similar initiatives run in Melbourne.
He said the 10 teens were selected from a shortlist of 81 and were eagerly preparing for their life-changing mission.
"They've all had struggles in their lives but we hope this experience will change them forever," he said.

"These kids want to help themselves, they just need a bit of guidance."
Kassandra Cowle-Henry said while the intensive training program was getting easier the looming addition of bugs, heat, limiting showering and no hair straightening irons was unsettling.
"It's going to be a challenge," she laughed.
"But I feel honoured to be going.
"I didn't realise until I started training how much stamina I actually had."
Leah O'Brien said the group was already bonding after just a few weeks of training practise.
Senior Sergeant Michael Reid said it was a daunting challenge the kids were embracing with open arms.
He said all 10 had progressed through the Operation Newstart program before acknowledging they needed further guidance.
As part of the program the teens will also raise money for an Isurava school, identified by Kokoda Track Foundation as a school requiring assistance, he said.
"What we hope they'll get out of it is to be able to see that when they put their minds to anything they'll be able to achieve the most challenging of challenges now and into the future. They'll really get to understand how another community and culture live as many have never experienced that before or even left the country," he said.
"Their confidence is growing and you can see that when speaking to them each week.
"It's already having an impact."
The sponsors include Hodges Real Estate, St Laurence, Geelong Rotary, St John of God, R&R Group, Decuba, Costa Group, Leopold Uniting Church and Karingal Yo

Multi-billion dollar LNG project top of Rudd's PNG agenda

Brendan Arrow for Pacific Beat

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's two day visit to PNG will focus on investment and trade issues, particularly a multi-billion dollar gas project.

Mr Rudd announced plans to visit PNG saying issues like regional security, heath and aid will be discussed with PNG's Prime Minister Peter O'Neill.

Photo: Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd speaks to locals soon after landing in Moreguina in Papua New Guinea on October 1, 2011. (AAP: Eoin Blackwell)

Australia's parliamentary secretary for the Pacific, Senator Matt Thistlethwaite, says PNG's multi-billion dollar Liquid Natural Gas project is on the top of that list.

Audio: Brendan Arrow for Pacific Beat (ABC News)

"We're working with the Papua New Guinean Government to ensure that they develop a sovereign wealth fund to ensure the proceeds or the benefits of that project are shared amongst the Papua New Guinean population," Mr Thistlethwaite said.
Apart from key trade partnerships, Australia and PNG also have a deal regarding asylum seekers.
Australia has re-opened detention centres in Nauru and PNG's Manus Island to try and deal with the number of asylum seekers coming to Australia by boat.
The PNG site has been criticised by the United Nations High Commission for refugees with its most recent report stating that while there has been some improvement, it fails to meet the terms of a memorandum of understanding between the two nations when it was established.
The report highlights poor living conditions and slow processing arrangements as key problems.
Mr Thistlethwaite says he doesn't believe the issue will be discussed between Kevin Rudd and Peter O'Neill as PNG is already keen on developing a regional solution with Australia.
"Papua New Guinea has shown great support for a regional solution to the issues of people smuggling," Mr Thistlethwaite said.
"There has been some constitutional court challenges to processing up there but they've been dismissed.
"So, we're really enthused by the commitment that Peter O'Neill and his government has shown to working with Australia on finding a lasting solution, a regional solution to the very difficult issue of people smuggling," he said.
Part of the discussions between the two prime ministers will also cover health service concerns in PNG.
Dr Curt von Boguslawski, World Vision PNG Country Program Director, says he hopes Mr Rudd's presence will help shine a light on health issues the pacific nation faces.
"It has been a hard road to really try and convince the government to do more on health and education," Dr Boguslawski said.
"Especially with the health system, there is a lot to be done.
Dr Boguslawksi says while funding through AusAID programs has helped improve the health situation of many Papua New Guineans, he would like the organisations providing real services on the ground to be involved in future discussions.
"Service delivery is very difficult. It's a rugged country and some of the primary health services are not delivered," Dr Boguslawksi said.
"So, malaria and TB are the result of not being able to deliver primary health services and awareness.
"Schools, education institutions need to work together to make sure health messages as well as lifestyle messages are passed on," Dr Boguslawski said.
Mr Rudd visited Papua New Guinea last year as Foreign Minister and before that in 2007 when he was Prime Minister the first time around.

InterOil CEO Says PNG talks with Exxon progressing

By James Paton

July 12, 2013

Businessweek

InterOil Corp. (IOC:US), the explorer in talks with Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM:US) to develop natural gas discoveries in Papua New Guinea, said negotiations are progressing with the world’s largest energy company by market value.

“It’s moving along nicely,” said Michael Hession, the former Woodside Petroleum Ltd. (WPL) executive named yesterday as InterOil’s chief executive officer. “I’m not disturbed in any way, shape or form. I’d emphasize that Exxon and this negotiation are going to be my number one priority.”
InterOil said in May that it started exclusive discussions with Exxon to develop the gas fields in Papua New Guinea. Exxon is interested in the assets because they may help expand the oil producer’s $19 billion liquefied natural gas project in the country, Mark Nolan, vice president for the Middle East and Australia, told reporters in Brisbane in May.
Hession, who brought PetroChina Co., Mitsubishi Corp. (8058) and Mitsui & Co. into Woodside’s Browse LNG project in Australia in agreements reached last year, said he carried out extensive research into InterOil before joining the company.
“I’ve been in discussions with InterOil for some months, since before I left Woodside,” he said. “It has been a careful and measured courtship.”
InterOil has been searching for international partners to help fund a Papua New Guinea natural gas project since 2009, when Bank of America Corp. (BAC:US)’s Merrill Lynch sold its 35 percent stake in the venture. Phil Mulacek, who founded the company, retired as chief executive officer in April.

Partnership proposals

InterOil said in 2011 that it hired Morgan Stanley, UBS AG and Macquarie Group Ltd. to evaluate partnership proposals. Mulacek said in an October 2011 interview that he expected to sign a partner by the end of that year.
Included in the discussions with Exxon is the potential sale of a stake in a license that comprises the Elk and Antelope fields, InterOil said. Hession declined to provide more information about the talks or say when he expected the negotiations to be completed.
Hession left his position overseeing Woodside’s Browse venture in May after Australia’s second-biggest oil and gas producer scrapped a plan to build the project at an onshore site in Western Australia because it was too expensive. Woodside now is considering using floating LNG technology to develop the Browse project.
InterOil is incorporated in Canada’s Yukon, has offices in Cairns, Australia and Singapore, and is traded in New York. Elk and Antelope hold an estimated 9 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas, InterOil said in its 2012 annual report.